Player-piano.



J. E. HOARE.

PLAYER PIANO.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 1, 1915.

Patented Jan. 2, 1917.

2 SHEETSSHEETI mm uz... E

J E. HOARE.

PLAYER PIANO.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 1, 1915.

1,210,474. Patented Jan. 2, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- Inventor.

' chest.

8 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN E. HOARE, 0F TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA.

PLAYER-PIANO.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN E. HOARE, a subject of the King of Great Britain, and resident of the city of Toronto, county of York, Province of Ontario, in the Dominion of Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Player-Pianos, as described in the following specification and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, that form part of the same.

The principal objects of the invention are, to overcome the difliculties met with in the event of any portion of the pneumatics getting out of order, to provide a construction of vacuum action chest which will not be we ceptible to the effects of atmospheric conditions and changes of temperature, and further to devise a pneumatic action in which the operating members are individually arranged and may be removed or replaced without interference with the others.

A still further object is to improve the valve action so as to obtain the quickest possible response.

The principal feature of the invention consists in the novel construction and arrangement of parts, whereby the valves for controlling the operation of the pneumatics are arranged in individual valve chests removably connected'to the main action chest.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of a front side of a portion of the action Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken through the line a/b Fig. 1 and extending through one of the pneumatics and its controlling valves. Fig. 3 is a perspec the View of one of the individual pneumatics. Fig. 4 is a vertical mid-sectional view of a modified 'form of an individual pneumatic. Fig. 5 is a top plan view of the pneumatic shown in Fig. 4: with the cover removed.

Like numerals of reference indicate corre sponding parts in each figure.

'Referring to the drawings, 1 is the action chest which is formed of a pair of thin metal plates 2 and 3 spaced apart by the longitu dinal wood strips 4. forming the longitudinal channels 5. These strips are set in cement and the plates and strips are secured together by machine screws 6 which bind the plates and strips securely in place. This construction of action chest forms an air tight casing which will not be affected by atmospheric or temperature conditions. The chest is provided with an opening 7 Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed .Tune 1, 1915.

Patented Jan. .2, 1917. Serial No. 31,398.

connected by suitable ducts to the main bellows chest of the player mechanism through which the air in the action chest is exhausted.

8 are individual metal valve chests secured to the inner face of the plate 3 by the screws 9 extending through the action chest, 2. suitable gasket 10 being interposed between the two metal faces. The valve chests 8 are formed with a recess 11' communicating with a hole 12 in the plate 3 leading from one of the channels 5 of the main action chest.

13 is a bellows commonly known as a pneumatic having its upper face abutting the under face of the metal valve chest 8 and being rigidly secured thereto by the screws 1 and 15. v

The upper block 16 of the pneumatic is formed with a pair of recesses 26 and 21, preferably circular, in the upper face. These recesses are separated from the chamber 11 by a diaphragm 17 of leather or other suitable material which also forms a pack- 111g between the upper metal member and the bellows top.

18 is a hole through the upper wall of the valve chest 8 communicating with the outer rest upon the top of the chest 8 to close the hole 18 and the valve 23 being adapted to close the inner end of said hole. The valve 23 is provided with a buffer 25 on its bottom side adapted to engage the diaphragm 17 extending over the chamber 26.

27 is a recess formed in the upper side of the forward end of the member 8 and 28 is a hole in the bottom of the said recess communicating with the valve chamber 11.

29 is a hole leading downwardly from the forward end of the recess 27 and communieating with a hole 30 in the upper block 16 of the pneumatic 13.

31 is a bracket secured within the valve chamber 11 and supporting a pivotal arm 32.

33 is a valve spindle secured to the outer end of the arm 32 and extending through the hole 28 and having secured to its outer end a disk valve 3e.

35 is a lender secured to the underside of the arm 32 and engaging the portion of the' diaphragm extending over the chamber 21.

36 is a plate closing the top of the recess 27 and having a hole 37 therein arranged in alinement with the hole 28. The valve 34: is adapted to normally close the hole 28 and adapted to operate to close the hole 37.

39, 40 and 41 are tubes secured in and extending through the action chest 1 and having their inner ends communicating with holes 42 leading into the recesses 27 under the diaphragm 17. These tubes lead upwardly and pass over the top of the action chest and extend to the tracker bar 13 over which the perforated sheet for operating the device is adapted to pass.

at is a. bleed hole leading from the recess %6 and communicating with the valve cham- The lower hinged members of the pneumatics 13 are provided with brackets 46 to which the members 47 for operating the piano action are connected. The members 47 are pivotally supported upon the pivotal arms 48 carried by the brackets 49 which bracket members are provided with outwardly extending flexible fingers 50 carrying the adjustable buffer members 51 to engage the arms 48 as they rise to their upward position.

Tn the operation oat this device a partial vacuum is created within the action chest by means of the usual exhaust mechanism and the record traveling over the tracker bar, closes the ends of the tubes 39 T0 and 41 leading to the pneumatics. The valves 22 and 34: are held tightly to their seats by the suction closing the holes 20 and 28 and the air is exhausted from the chamber 26 and tubes connecting same with the tracker bar through the bleed holes all, The air is ere hausted from the chamber 21 through the duct 19 and hole 90. As the record sheet travels over the tracker bar and the orifices therein open the tubes leading therefrom the pressure of air passing through the tubes enters the chamber 26 and forces the diaphragm l? iuaivardly thereby lifting the valve 23 to close the bottom end of the hole 26 simultaneously opening the upper end. thereof to the atmosphere. The pres sure entering the hole 20 flows through the duetld and hole 20 to the cham ber Ql thereby' lifting the valve 3-l to close the hole 37 in the plate 36 which is ordi narily open to the atmosphere and coincidently opening the hole 28. Upon the open ing of the hole 28 the air is exhausted from the chamber 26 and from the bellows of the pneumatic 13 through the holes and 30 thereby causing a quick upward movement of the bottom hinged member l5 of the relative pneumatic which in turn operates the members e7 to actuate the piano action and cause the striking of the key. Immediately upon the closing of the hole in the tracker bar and the consequent cutting off of the air pressure through the tubes to the diaphragm holding the valve 22 open, the suction within the valve chest closes the primary valve 22 and exhausts the air from the chamber 21, coincidently closing the valve 3t and opening the air passage to the pneumatic bellows thereby returning it to its normal position.

The action thus described is not new in principle and no claim is made respecting such action, except in so far as the pecularities of structure in the arrangement of the individual units is concerned.

The arrangement of the primary and secondary valves within individual units has numerous advantages, a much quicker response and therefore sensitiveness in action will be had in a structure where primary valves are separated the least possible distance from the secondary valves. Further, the arrangement of two valves within the metallic valve chest obviates the possibility of any leakage between the valves and also the arrangement of two valves within a single unit which can be readily detached from the main action chest without interference with any of the other valve chests renders the matter of repair very simple and also greatly simplifies the matter of original con struction.

Tn Figs. l and 5 of the drawings, l show a single valve unit constructed in a similar manner to the double valve unit. This element or unit is constructed precisely the same as the outer end of the double unit and has but the one valve 52 supported upon the pivotal arm 53 and operated by the diaphragm 54. This unit may be secured an action chest similar to that described, the tubes 39, so and i1 having communication with a hole 55 communicating with a recess 56 beneath the diaphragm 5t The chamber 57 cernrnun hole 12 in the action chest and 53 is arranged between the and 583385 56. tion is very simple a of ready atta claimed ior the dot. occupies such small the possib' ity of other advantages n it will be noted on refere' that the screws 9 and tubes 39 the desired d and the tubes and screws are so arranged as to render the loosening of the screws and the removal of the individual pneumatic units possible without in any way interfering with 5 the tubes connected to the tracker bar.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In a piano player, the combination with the piano action, vacuum mechanism, tracker bar and action chest, of individual valve chests removably secured to said action chest and each formed with a vacuum chamber in the underside and a secondary valve chamber in the upper side, a bellows secured to the underside of said valve chest having its interior communicating with the upper chamber of said valve chest, a primary valve arranged in said vacuum chamber, a secondary valve arranged in said secondary valve chamber and extending into said vacuum chamber, an arm pivotally supported Within said vacuum chamber and supporting said secondary valve and diaphragms for operrating said primary and secondary valves.

2. In a p ano player, the combination with the piano action, vacuum mechanism and tracker bar, of an action chest comprising a pair of metal plates spaced apart, a plurality of strips longitudinally arranged and sealed between said plates being spaced apart to form a plurality of vacuum channels connected with the vacuum mechanism,

a plurality of individual pneumatics removably secured to the outer face of one of the plates of said action chest each having a vacuum chamber communicating with one of the longitudinal channels in said action chest through holes in the said plate, clamping screws extending through the plates and longitudinal strips of said action chest and into said pneumatics to hold them in position, openings extending through the plates and strips of said action chest communicating with the diaphragm chambers of the pneumatics, tubes connected with the tracker bar and extending into the holes in the action chest leading to the diaphragm chambers.

In a piano player, the combination with the piano. action, vacuum mechanism and tracker bar, of an action chest comprising,- a pair of metal plates spaced apart, a plurality of wood strips longitudinally arranged between and cemented to said metal plates, said plates and strips being clamped together and forming a plurality of longitudinal vacuum chambers connected to the vacuum mechanism, individual pneumatics having flanged faces abutting the outer face of one of said plates and secured in air tight contact therewith by fastening members ex tending through said plates and wood strips, said pneumatics having their vacuum chambers communicating with the vacuum chambers in said action chest, a plurality of tubes. communicating with the tracker bar and placed in perpendicular arrangement outside of the action chest on the side opposite from the pneumatics and having their terminal ends extending through holes in said plates and strips and communicating with the valve operating mechanism in said pneumatics, the pneumatic fastening means being arranged between said perpendicularly arranged tubes.

Signed at the city of Toronto, Canada, this 13th day of May 1915.

JOHN E. HOARE. 

